In the famous writer Dumas's novel "The Three Musketeers", in the prison of Saint-Marguerite on the famous maritime island in France, there is such a mysterious person who wears a velvet mask all his life and never shows his true face. Became a legend.
Eventually, the Man in the Iron Mask became a famous story in French history: he was real, but no one could know his identity.
In 1661, on the island of Saint-Margaret in France, a "guest" was greeted, he was tall and dressed in a graceful and luxurious costume, but the most eye-catching thing was the iron mask on his face, and the prison staff could only see the faint gaze in his steel forehead.
The island's prisons are known for their special use of high-value criminals, and many of them were once dignified nobles who were treated specially, but no one was as special as the Man in the Iron Mask.
Soon the warden of St. Margaret received orders from the top to give preferential treatment to the prisoner in the helmet, but if the man dared to take off his mask or reveal his identity to the prison staff, he would not hesitate to kill him, in addition, if any prison officer wanted to take off his mask, perhaps asking his identity, he would also be hanged for treason. The news came down, so that the entire prison staff was curious about this mysterious traveler, but also added a layer of deep fear, and even the fierce and vicious jailer did not dare to talk with the Iron Mask Man.
The few exchanges between the Man in the Iron Mask and the jailer were those made of the necessary demands of life, or the words of thanks he said on the occasion of delivering meals, and his voice was elegant and dignified, and his polite performance was everywhere reflected that he had been highly educated. Eight years passed quickly, and the Iron Mask ended life on the island of St. Margaret and in 1669 was transferred to the capital of the Bourbon dynasty, the Bastille, where the Bastille prison side was also conveyed the same order, and the Iron Mask enjoyed a separate room and a first-class meal, still living his lonely but not miserable life. What intrigued many of the jailers was that the warden, Mr. Mars, was a red man on the king's side, who knew the many secrets of the Bourbon court, but he was very respectful to this man in the iron mask, and during this period, the Minister of Defense, the Marquis of Lois, also personally came to visit the man in the iron mask, and spoke with a very humble attitude.
The news about the Man in the Iron Mask came out, which made everyone want to know the truth about him even more, what was his secret? Unfortunately, however, people may never have this opportunity, the Iron Mask man lived in the Bastille for more than 30 years, until 1703, although his face could not be seen, but the jailer knew that his skin was aging, his movements were obviously slow, and finally the Iron Mask stopped breathing in this year, and he did not have any explanation before his death, but the court personnel who rushed to hear the news soon buried him, and even did not allow the priest to prepare a complete prayer for him. All the things used before the Life of the Iron Mask and other traces were destroyed, and if it were not for word of mouth among the jailers, it is hard to believe that one person had lived in prison for 34 years.
This Man in the Iron Mask became an ancient anecdote in France, and it is speculated that his identity may have a great relationship with the then French Emperor Louis XIV, who was known as the Sun King, the longest reigning monarch in the world so far, during his reign, the centralized dynasty of France reached its peak, and the imprisonment of the Man in Iron Mask in 1661 coincided with the beginning of Louis's power.
From this information, many scholars have made bold speculations, some people think that he died in the guillotine in the revolution of King Charles I, Charles did not die, but secretly came to France, under the protection of Louis XIV to survive, but why Louis wanted to protect King Charles, the logic seems to be a little different.
Historian Quicks Ward believes that this prisoner is Louis XIII's biological father Louis XIII, after the birth of Louis XIV, Louis's mother Anne and the French king's relationship is very poor, so Sward speculated whether Anne launched a coup d'état, announced that Louis XIII died of a violent illness, but actually secretly imprisoned the old king with her son. It is not difficult to understand why identity is confidential.
Of course, these are just speculations, not enough to explain the true identity of the Man in the Iron Mask, and I hope that future history can unveil the clouds.